East African female
traders set to
benefit from “One Stop Border Posts”

BUSIA (Xinhua) --Florence Atieno has witnessed the resilience and
fortitude of female entrepreneurs along the Kenya-Uganda border
who have weathered immense challenges to remain true to their
vocation.

The 41-year-old
mother of six is a native of Kenya’s Busia County, which is not
only a melting pot of diverse cultures but also an enduring
symbol of cross-border trade..

Atieno started
trading along the Kenya-Uganda border at a time when the
contribution of her gender in the growth of commerce was
accorded dismal attention by a patriarchal society.

Nevertheless, the
enterprising widow has cut a niche in the cut-throat world of
cross-border trade.

Atieno and thousands
of her female colleagues will benefit from the establishment of
a “One Stop Border Post” at the Kenya-Uganda border in Busia
town that has already created frenzy ahead of its launch on
Saturday.

Speaking to Xinhua
on Friday ahead of the official launch of the project by
presidents of Kenya and Uganda, Atieno said it will unleash
additional benefits to female traders from the two east African
nations.

“We have already
started reaping the benefits of a ‘One Stop Border Post’ that
has eliminated barriers to cross-border trade... during its
trial phase,” Atieno said. “Our goods are being cleared at
record speed and we feel motivated to scale up the volume of
goods traded with our neighbors.”

The project seeks to
promote seamless cross-border movement of goods and passengers
through automation and placing of key agencies like immigration
and customs under one roof.

Atieno said that an
estimated two thousand women who trade across the Kenya-Uganda
border anticipate reduced cost of clearing goods and improved
trust from their clients.

“My message to
established and aspiring female small-scale traders is to
harness the opportunities that the ‘One Stop Border Post’ will
unleash,” Atieno said, adding that she expects her general
merchandise business to grow exponentially.

Busia is the busiest
port of entry in the larger east African region in terms of
passenger traffic, and movement of cargo has also been on an
upward trajectory.

Mariam Babu, a
46-year-old Ugandan trader who exports eggs from her native
country to Kenyan shop owners, said she felt relieved now that
it will require less time to clear goods at the border.

“The ‘One Stop
Border Post’ has already revolutionized my business and I look
forward to increasing the volume of eggs imported from Uganda to
help meet a rising demand in Kenya,” said Babu.

Enjoying a cordial
working relationship with her Kenyan peers, she is a firm
believer in regional integration, which promises economic
prosperity for ordinary citizens.

Babu settled along
the Kenya-Uganda border at a time when female traders battled
with monumental hiccups like harassment, lack of access to
credit and to lucrative markets.

Nevertheless, the
mother of five was upbeat the “One Stop Border Post” would pave
the way for smooth transactions across the border that will be
accompanied by higher profit margins.

“We need to
sensitize women on the benefits of a harmonized and automated
cross-border trade regime that eliminates backlog in clearance
of goods,” said Babu.

Female
entrepreneurs, who control over 90 percent of informal trade
across the common border, will be the greatest beneficiaries of
a streamlined and automated cargo clearance regime to be
realized through establishment of a “One Stop Border Post.”

Daniel Muturi,
program manager of Infrastructure and One Stop Border Posts at
the Nairobi-based Trade Mark East Africa (TMEA), said a
simplified, digitized and fast mode of clearing goods will have
a positive impact on female-owned small and medium-sized
enterprises in the region.

“Small-scale
cross-border traders in this region who are mostly women will be
able to save on time and financial resources upon full
operationalization of the ‘One Stop Border Post,’” Muturi said.

Supportive
infrastructure, skilled manpower and a friendly regulatory
environment are key to successful utilization of “One Stop
Border Posts” in the larger east African region, he added.